Installation

Will these distros assist or hinder you on your journey?

Many Linux distributions give users the option to try them before installing them to disk. This highly useful feature lets you test the various aspects of a distribution, such as installing new software, and otherwise acclimatise to it without going through installation. This is important because installing Linux, although a far more streamlined process nowadays, still requires users to make some crucial decisions that they might not have faced before. The most important of these is partitioning, where you can choose to either erase the entire disk and use it to install the distro or specify a custom partitioning layout.

At the very least, Linux distributions require a root partition (often referenced by the / symbol). Its also possible to carve separate partitions, such as /home, etc. but this is for slightly more experienced users.

If you’re unsure about performing the partitioning yourself for fear of risking the data on your disk, running Linux in a virtual machine is a viable solution. You can install Oracle Virtualbox or a similar app to your existing operating system, and then install Linux within, which will not harm your existing installation or data.

Deepin requires a minimum of 16GB of disk space, and recommends at least 20GB. It doesn’t have a live medium, so you must install it to disk before you can use it.

The Elementary OS installer is quite robust and lets you create a custom partitioning layout on your disk. By default, the installer will automatically download all available updates during installation. You can turn this off by unselecting the relevant checkbox. You can always install updates post-installation, if after a few days of testing you decide to persist with the distribution.

The Solus installer is more primitive compared to others. You must already have specific space on your hard disk carved out for it before beginning the installation. You can use the live environment to experiment with the distro and even use the included Gparted tool to partition your hard disk and make room for Solus.

Unlike the other distributions, which don’t let you choose what software is installed by default, Manjaro gives you the choice between Libreoffice and Softmaker Freeoffice suite during installation, but nothing else.

The installation process for most Linux distributions typically follows a routine set of steps, which define the time zone and specify the keyboard layout, partition the hard disk and creating a user account.